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Got my truck back today, Happy to report that I did not require wheel bearings or rear brakes, however Im still suffering through a vibration. Next I will be going after a road force tire balance, maybe followed up by a warranty claim if that still doesn’t help. I love Duratracs, but i despise this current set.
Brian changed my diff fluid, said it looked contaminated, like I had submerged it. I would only have to agree with that assessment. He did a steering alignment, and it is BANG ON Centre and tracking true. Also got my AC inspected and recharged in preparation of family camping trips in the truck.
No pictures of my efforts today, but in the shop. I replaced the swaybar bushings in the Tacoma. OMG finally found the source of the awful rattle/clank in the front end. Last night i layed on my back in the driveway and man handled the swaybar and got it to move slightly, so I confirmed that the bushings were toast. I’ve only driven 3 km on the new bushings and I can already tell they were the culprit.
Next up, Brian has my Tacoma in wasaga this coming Monday, replacing the rear wheel bearing’s, rear brakes and doing an alignment.
The ouchie is healing, think I dodged infection as pain and swelling has gone down two consecutive days. Even yesterday it was feeling much better. Gonna try to buy some exhaust pieces today and get to fabricating the first of many pieces from header to tailpipe.
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Made myself some brake line plugs while running a machine at work that prefers to be neglected. I dug through a scrap bin to find some broken steel pins with a stepped button, hammered them into the fitting, and welded the protruding end shut. This has both a flanged head that can’t fit through the hole, and weld preventing the pin from backing out. Just gonna chop down the excess pin, and grind it smooth.
These plugs are for another project yet to make its debut in The Shop. Just over a month to go.
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Got myself a good ouchie last night, managed to put a broken drillbit into the meat of my hand on my pinky side. I knew instantly I required first aid,Sam hooked me up with some cleaner And a big band aid. 9-hours later, this mo-fo hurts.
Yesterday in the mail I got my Fiberglass exhaust wrap. Unreal it arrived from China faster than my cell phone screen protector from Markham.
I think i need to order an additional 50′ at 2″ width to finish wrapping the exhaust south of the header, south of the catalytic to where it finishes wrapping past the t-case.
Today in The Shop, my other buddy Matt and i pushed his KLR into the shop after crossing 2ft of mushy snow which fills my backyard. Matt bought his bike in November in a snow storm and we tucked it into my back shed where the other bikes hibernate.
Matts plan was to give it a pre-safety inspection, where the only issues we found were a blown license plate bulb and a missing cotter pin in the rear axle nut.
After a successful pre-safety, Matt took his first ride on it. Now is the time for paperwork, then he’s ready to adventure.
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Here’s the two cats side by side.
The old one is 15″ long, new one just under 8″. Gives me enough space to get both O2 sensors in before the crossmember (I think).Attachments:
Thanks Kevin! I thought it sounded pretty good too for being open at the collector off the Tri-Y header. Was expecting it to be a lot louder. Still plenty loud enough to shake decorations off the shelf, so not sustainable for my ear drums haha.
Received my third catalytic converter in the mail yesterday, and it fits soooo much better. Will take a side-by-side comparison tonight. I’ll be able to route my exhaust over the trans crossmember as opposed to under the cross member with the larger cat.
Gotta start accumulating exhaust pipe, bends, flanges and gaskets. Think I’ll bring my cat and the collector flange to National Exhaust to size up the pipe diameter i need there. 2″ ID flange, 2.25″ ID on the cat. Thinking a 45* bend, 2.25″ pipe could fit with maybe a slight flare on one end. Next week problem, after payday.
A little Sunshine makes a big difference in my life, so I converted two hours of building forts and bicycle rides into epic results in The Shop.
Psyched myself up yesterday, felt brave to put 15L off freshish 87 octane in the tank, and cycle the keys for good.
After a fuel leak at the tank (loose gear clamps), and 2-hours of NO SPARK investigation, I cleaned two ground locations and leapt for joy when Redee barked to life.
Redee spitting out some rays of motivation through an open header.
Redee lives!! 3RZ transplant, one step closer to cruising.
Cheers!!
The shop has seen some activity, but no photos of such efforts.
A couple weekends ago I put a new high pressure power steering hose into my sis-laws Altima, that was a total pain in the ass to do on a creeper. I also put in a windshield washer reservoir as hers was cracked at the 1/3 volume level.
I have repaired Matts snowblower twice this winter. Once the final drive chain blew a link, so a random tiny bolt and nut saved the day. A couple days later a shear pin on the final drive shaft broke, so I hammered a roll pin in its place.
Had the Taco in The Shop looking for the source of a chunk/rattle in the front end. Sounds like a bushing is gone, makes clunky noises when a bump is hit with just one tire. Thinking maybe sway bar bushungs? I bought them few months back, but never installed. I haven’t sorted out the rear and vibration, so the Taco still drives kinda shitty.
Nothing really happened in the last month.
My 10-year old iPhone broke, and I was phone and camera-less for a month. I managed to get all my photos recovered, but now they’re all on my computer and not my cell phone. Have to start making progress on Redee to get new photos haha.
I attempted to install the front carpet, but got pissed off and put it back up into the loft. Now i still have to reinstall the shifters, boots, seatbelts etc.
I added coolant and atf to the power steering system in preparation to fire her up. Still need to install a header gasket, and the air intake system, and put some gas in the tank before i twist the keys over. Getting close, but legitimately did nothing productive for the last month.
Just realized that this is the first time I’ve ever installed the dirt cars in Redee. They’ve Been in storage since I removed the interior, and did a major de-turding shortly after bringing her home in 2018.
Made some great progress on the interior today with one of my daughters. We had a blast doing Truck arts and crafts in the garage.
We cut new Vapor Barrier, applied new butyl rubber to keep it in place. We had to repair the door cards too, they are weak from the speaker holes that were cut into them. So we added some peg board and wood screws. Not great, but better than naked door frames.
I’m waiting on adhesive backed sound deadening to apply to the floor before putting down new carpet. Should be here this week.
Planning to save interior improvements as daddy-daughter time, and exhaust building at night by myself.
Some before and after door pics
Great news everybody!
The Australian header fits like a charm! Perfect clearance all over. Soooo happy. It won’t floor nearly as well as the LCE unit, but this one was 1/3 the price to my door.
The money saved is noticeable in the finish (painted vs ceramic), diameter (2” vs 2.5”), and bends (die vs mandrel). However, I’m not upset because I can more than finish the rest of the exhaust system with the money saved there.Perhaps after next payday I’ll buy the fluids I require (gas, atf for power steering, and Coolant), and attempt to test fire.
In the meantime i am trying to sell a pair 2.5” catslytic converters, so I can buy a smaller ID one. The header Outputs at 2.0” ID, and I was planning to run a 2.25” system. Now I’m not so sure.
It’s not pretty but it works. I cut off the original steering stabilizer mount off the frame, and welded it to the idler arm steering stop. Overall it’s only about 10cm from its original location.
Another item off the list.
